Brickmakiw g-machin e



F. W. BUTTERWORTH. BRICKMAMNG MACHINE.

APPLlcATmN man AuG.19.1915. Lg. Patented Aug. 8,1916.

- 2 sains-SHEET 1..

l ,l 93,8%. Patented Aug. 8, 1916.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

FRANK Vl'. BTTER'WOBTH, EATUILLE,

Speeication of Letters atcnt,

.application i'led August T o all 'whom t may concern: f

Be it known that FRANK lN. Burana WORTH, a citizen of the UnitedStatesbresiding at Danville, in the county oi '"i/er milion, in theState of Illinois, have in vent ed certain new and useful nniirovenientsin Briekrnaking-lvachines, of which the following is a speciicaticn.

My invention relates 'to brick-making Inachines, and refers particularlyto machines for treating the surfaces of the bricks.,

It Was formerly the custom to mauuzu:- ture face bricks with a smoothsurface, these bricks ordinarily having been made by iolding.Slvlbsequently, after the introduction the sci-called stifiinud process,the bricks were manufactured by first extruding ribbon of clay or thelike through a die and subsequently' cutting this ribbon inio suitablelengths so that the individual bricks were formed. As a furtherrefinement on this process,H different Imethods were used for rougheningthe sur-face or the brick in y order to give it a more attractiveappealkA ance. The simplest and earliest process "r r roughening brickconsisted in removing a from the clay-ribbon after it left the die thinlayer oi material, this operation being accomplished by means of a @vireadjacent to the mouth of the die. The dep' o rougheninar could be variedto considerable extent by the size of the Wire employed. In the use ofthis process the surface ci the brick While roughened extending in adirection transverse to 'the clay-ribbon. and this surface was veryunsightly in the inished product. lvioreover, in order to give a uniformappearance 'to a Wall constructed with bricks of this nature it isnecessary that each brick should be laid in a particular position inorder to give the proper homogeneous effect to the Wall as a Whole. ltWill be evident that the necess tv of layingr all' of the bricks in thisWay entails great additional labor on the part of a brick-layer.

Other processes of roughening the surface of bricks have consisted inscoring the clayrihbon by the use of pins or the like, after Which thefurrows thus formed have been partially obliterated by furthertreatment, Such as rolling the surface ci the ribbon in order topartially flatten the material loosened by the furrowing1 action. Thedisadvantage of this process ,is that the finished as left with cracks vbricks contain on their siirfaceiin a moreor less clearly defined wayseries of lines which are unsightly, and, ino. over7 the clay which hasbeen reroll -l as it 'face of the brick does not adhere rml-y, with theresult 'that the surface of the brick is verj apt to crumble unadervarying' conditions.

it is one or' the objects of my invention 'to constar iaehine whichwill. produce bricks7 similar articles, which shall have a rougiheef-,dsurface without predominatii lines uli: in any direction, While nie thelicht effect produced on i b brick sli-ill be soit and 4liglit-absorbingrather tha )elle ing.

A, l "oe'luceil by Vthe machine off niy inv; y he laid in any positionin a wall. in whatever position it is laid will eiiect ci .l clit on thesurface o1 the brick '1, con u'. Y

Further ooi/cts oY my invention consist i? eine; a brick oli the desiredcharac- "m above mentioned and with a raa- Whici shall be inexpensiveand caproducing bricks in large quan-- ral terras, my invention conof amachine for inakirufj a brick having' jhened surface without predominat-.j lines extending' in any direction, and nrovldel ou its surface with alarge number minute ii nta'tions.

ahich in givthe brick the riesired qualities.

The

machine used in connection `with the ordi f si nud process and has meansfor /S A* whininary rougheninggf the surface of the clay-ribbon, andthen subjecting it to a stu-,ailing action, the latter beingilareferahly d means of brushes having i i' or the like the een. By thisstxg'zpiingg action the prehened surface of the brick is lii'hinarilyro' i i brought into the de ired condition by which all traces of cracksor lines are removed, While the minute indental'ions made by the brushesfurther assist in giving the desired appearance These and otheradvantages of my inven- 'tion will he .riore readily understood by rei'-erence to accompanying drawings, which show preferred embodiments of niyimprovements, and in Which- Figure is plm of my improved hll were, intothe sur-v bon ll, which is received on the endless con- .the brushes 9.0

Voyer-belt 12, or `pulleys 13,

which passes around sheaves one of which is shown in Fig. 2. A table orplatform 'le is provided which has a surface approximately at the levelof the upper surface of the conveyor-belt A horizontal wire l5 and thetivo vertithe die 1l), the horizontal wire l5 serving to remove a thinlayer from the upper su riace of the ribbon ll, and the wires 16performing a similar function with reference to the sides of theclay-ribbon. The plow-shaped member 17 Supported on the table orplatform le serves to remove from the upper surface of the clay-ribbonthe layer of material shaved therefrom by the wire l5. The clay-ribbonll as it leaves rthe die l() has ay smooth surface, as indicated in theportion 18 ol the ribbon. The wires l5 and 16, however, serve to roughenthe surface of the ribbon, `in the manner shown in the portion 19 ofsaid ribbon, a number of more or less tine transverse cracks being`formed in this surface.

The `brush 20 having eccentric pivotal connections with the rotatabledisks 2l and is located at one side oi the clay-ribbon. Il, and 'asimilar brush 23 having eccentric pivotal connections with the disks 24and 25 is locatedat the other side of said ribbon. The shafts on whichthe lower disks 22 and 2l are-mouutefgl also have mounted thereonpulleys which are connected with each other by a suitable erossedbelt28. (lne of these shafts is connected with a suitable source of. power(not shown in the drawings) so that the disks 2l, 22, 254i. and 25 maybe. simultaneously rotated in the direction indicated by the arrows inFig. l. .Each of and 23 is provided with bristies 29, thes bristlesbeing resilient and preferably formed of tempered tlat' steel Wire.

It Will be evident that as the disks with which the brushes 20 and 23are connected. rotate, thebrushes are moved into engagement with thesides of the clay-ribbon and then travel in the same direction oitmovement as that in which the clay-ribbon itself is traveling, afterwhich the bristles are discal wires 16 are provided near the i'nouth ofengaged and the rotation of the disks brings the brushes back to theiroriginal position by moving them 1n a direction opposite to venlarged attheir outer Lisa-ave that of the travel ot the clay-ribbon while thebristles of the brushes are disengaged from the latter. During the.engagement of the sides of the clay-ribbon by the bristles the brushespreferably travel very slightly faster or very slightly more slowly tian the ribbon itself is travelii'igr, the resiliency of the bristlescausing,r the latterto be bent by the dilierence in rate ot' travel butnot causing the bristles to be drawn over the surface of the ribbon sothat any lines or markings are formed. By this slight bending of thebristles of the brushes, when the latter are nearly disengaged `from theclay-ribbon the resiliency oit' the bristles causes thein to becomestraightened with a snap, and a. ininute amount of clay is Lpicked, asit were.I from the surface of the'clay-ribbon, while at the same 'timethe impact of the brushes with the surface has caused a further. generalroughening of the latter, the transverse wires l5 and 'i6 are Minuteindentations ends are left in the surface ot the clay-ribbon by reasonof the action of the bristles penetrating the surface and performingthereon a picking action as they leave their engagement with theclay-ribbon. y

.fi brush 30 carrying the bristles 3l, similar to the bristles Q9 abovementioned", is

cracks formed by the entirely obliterated.

adapted toengage the upper surface or the clay-ribbon 1l in the samemanner that the brushes 20 and Q3 engagethe sides et this ribbon. Thebrush E20 is eccentrically pivotaily connected at its corners with thedisks 32, 3ft and 35, these disks being suitably mounted for rotation,and the disk having connected therewith the shaft 36 on which is mountedthe driving' pulley 37, so that the disks may be rotated in thedirection indicated by the arrows in Fig. 2. rl`he action oi' theengagement oi 'the bristles Sil o't' the brush 30 with the upper surfaceoi the clay-ribbon is exactly the saine as described in connection withthe engagement oit' the bristles oi." the side brushes 20 and 23 withthe sidesoi' the ribbon. The particles ot clay which are picked stromthe sides of the ribbon fall 'troni the ribbon by their own weight,whereas the particles picked from the upper surface of the ribbon by theaction of the brush 30 remain on the surllace of the ribbon. ,Theseparticles or" clay may be removed by any suitable means. but li preferto employ a blower 37a, which effectually blows these particles awayfrom the upper surface of 'the ribbon Without affooting the texture ofthis surface. `lifter the clay-ribbon l has been subjected to the actionof the side brushes 2O and 23 and the `upper brush 30, the appearance ofthe surface of the clay-ribbon is as indicated in Vits portion 38. Afterthe operations just described have been completed, the clayribbon is cutinte bricks by wire or other nies forced from the die 10, and then hasremoved from its upper surface and sides thin layers of material bymeans of the wires and 16, the material thus removed from the luppersurface of the brick being carried bon.

away from, the surface by means of the plow 17.

The upper surface and sides of the clayribbon, which have thus beenpreliminarily roughened and from which the hard skin formed by the diehas been removed, are next subjected to the stippling action of the sidebrushes 20 and 23 and the upper brush 30, the bristles of which remainin contac with the surface of the clay-ribbon, while the brushes travelin the same direction as the ribbon' and at a slightly different speedtherefrom, so that the resilient bristles are bent, whereby ondisengagement of the bristles from the surface a picking action removessmall particles of clay from the rib- The loose particles of clay on theupper surface of the ribbon are then removed by blowing, or othersimilar means,

^ after which the clay-ribbon is cut into the -form of' machine.

bricks, which are then subsequently calcincd to form a finished article.

In Figs. 3 and i I have shown a modified instead of using fiat brushes Iemploy the rotary side brushes 39,

which are mounted on shafts carried by a suitable framework 40. Thebristles l1 of these brushes are engaged by the sides of tlie ribbon 11,so that the travelof the ribbon itself causes the brushes to be rotated,and during this rotation the bristles 41 which are actually' inengagement with the sides of the ribbon 11 are bent, so that when anindividual bristle is almost disengaged. from the-surface oftheclay-ribbon the resiliency of the bristle causes the bristle tostraighten out and perform the picking operation above described.` Inorder that the picking may throw the small particles of clay in thedirection in which the ribbon is traveling, I prefer to have thcbristles 41 made with a slight permanent bend; otherwise,upon'engagement of the end of a bristle by the clay-ribbon its curvaturewould be formed in the opposite direction from that which is representedin the drawings, and the subsequent picking actionwould not be aseffective.

'T he top brushes 42 are similar tothe side brushes 39, and are rotatedby engagement of the bristles 43 of these brushes with the upper surfaceof the clay-ribbon 11. If desired, the side vbrushes 39 and the topbrushes ,are

4imay be provided with brakes so th at they will have a greater lag whentheir bristles are engaged by the clay-ribbon. ln this way the bendingof the individual bristles and the pickingl action may be increased, butit 'will be apparent that the braking action must not be so great thatthe brushes will not be readily rotated by tbc action of theclay-ribbon, as otherwise 'the bristles of the brushes would simplyscore the surface of the clay-ribbon with longitudinal lines and wouldnot perform the stippling action, which is characteristic of myinvenytion.

lt will be apparent to those skilled in the art that manychanges couldbe made in the details of my invention without departing from the spiritthereof, as deiincd in the appciuled claims.

lvl/hat l claim is: l

i. in. apparatus for making bricks or the like, the combination of aforming-die,

means for forcing ceramic material through said die to form a ribbon,means for convcying said ribbon from said die, and resilient stippiingmeans movablr-r in the same direction as said ribbon and .nlapted to bebrought into engagen'icnt with the surface thereof.

ln apparatus for malvii'ig bricks or the like, the coin ination of aforming-die, means for for, ing ceramic material through said dit toforni a ribbon, means for lconveying said ribbon from said die, andstip'- pling means haw "2j a plurality of resilient members thereonadapted to bc brought into eng gement with the moving surface of saidribbon.

.ln aq'iparatus for making bricks or the like, the rombination of aforming-die, means for forcing ceramic material through sai` die to forma ribbon, means for conveying said ribbon from said die, and a brushmovable in the same direction as said ribben and haring resilientbristles thereon adapted to be brought into engijagmncnt with tile suruface of said ribbon.

l. lln apparatus for making bricks or the iikc, the combination of aforming-die, means for. forcing ceramic material through said die toform a. ribbon, means for conveying said ribbon from said die, means forremoving a layer of material. from the surface of said ribbon, andresilient stippling means for forming minute indentations in the surfaceof said ribbon from which said layer has been removed.

in an apparatus for making bricks or the like, tbe combination of aforiningdie, means for forcing ceramic material through said die to forma ribbon, wires located at the mouth of said die for removing thinlayers of material from the upper surface and sides of said ribbon,means for conveying Said ribbon away from Said die, and brushes isohaving resilient bristles adapted to be brought into engagement with theupper surface and sides of said ribbon, said brushes being movable inthe direction of travel of said ribbon. l p

6. In an apparatus for making` bricks or the like, `the combination of aforming-die, means for forcing ceramic material through said die to forma ribbon, wires located at the mouth of said die for removing thinlayers of material from the upper surface and sides of said ribbon,means for conveying said ribbon away from said die, brushes havingresilient bristles adapted to be brought into engagement with the uppersurface and sides of said ribbon, said brushes being movable in thedirection of travel of said ribbon, and means for removing loosenedmaterial from the upper surface of said ribbon.

7. In an apparatus for making bricks or the like, the combinationvof aforming-die, means for forcing ceramic material through said die to forma ribbon, wires located at th'e mouth. of saiddie for removing thinlayers of material from the upper surface and sides of said ribbon,means for conveying said ribbon away from said die, a fiat brushcarrying resilient [laty steel bristles, and means for moving said brushin the direction of movement of said ribbon and bringing said resilientbristles into engagement with the surface of the ribbon.

S. In an apparatus for making bricks or the like, the combination of aforming-die,

means for forcing` ceramic material through said die to form a ribbon,ing said ribbon away from said die, brushes having resilient bristlesadapted to be brought into engagement with the surface of sait `ribbon,said brushes being movable in the direction of travel of said ribbon,and means for removing loosened material from the upper surface of saidribbon.

l). ln an apparatus for making bricks or the like, the combination ofinforming-die, means for forcing ceramic material through means forconvey- 4tion of movement of vsaid ribbon said die to form a ribbon,means for conveying said ribbon away from said die, a Hat brush'carrying resilientbristles thereon, and means for moving said brush inthe direcv and bringing said resilient bristlesinto'engagement with thesurface of the ribbon.

10.v In an apparatus for making bricks or the like, the combination of aforming-die, means for forcing ceramic material through said die to forma ribbon, means for conveying said ribbon away from said die, a brushcarrying resilient bristles thereon, andr ,/l `means for moving saldbrush in the direc`l tion of movement of said ribbon butfat ai differentspeed from the speed of said ribbon and bringing said resilient bristlesinto engagement with the surface of the ribbon.

ll. In a brick-making machine, the combination of a conveyer adapted tocarry a machine,

ing said brush, actuating means for moving said brush towardy and awayfrom said ribbon, and means for maintaining said brushribbon of .ceramicmaterial through said` a stippling brush, means for carry- I carryingmeans in alinement with respect to said ribbon. y

12. In a briclrmaking machine, the combination of a conveyer adapted to`carry a ribbon of ceramic material through said machine, a stipplingbrush adapted to 'engage the'surface of said ribbon, means for carryingsaid brush, rotatable'means for moving said brush-carrying means towardVand away from the surface of said ribbon, and means for automaticallymaintaining said brush-carrying means in alinement wlth respect to saidribbon.

In witness whereof, L hereunto 4subscribe my name this 16th day ofAugust, A. D.,

FRANK w. BUTTERWORTH-` Witnesses:

MARGARET CARNEY, EDNA D. SCHROEDER.

